Laowa Ultima S35 Lite 12-120mm T4 Zoom - Arri PL

Laowa Arri PL 12-120mm T4 Ultima S35 – Lite

The Laowa Arri PL 12-120mm T4 Ultima S35 – Lite is a professional cine zoom for Super 35 sensor cameras with an ARRI PL mount, built for creators who want plenty of flexibility in a light housing. The 10x zoom range runs from a wide 12 mm wide-angle to a tight 120 mm close-up, so within a single shot you go from an overall shot to detail without changing lenses. This makes the lens suitable for a wide variety of situations, from a calmly set-up documentary to fast reality television.

The optical design consists of 28 elements in 20 groups and delivers enough sharpness to fully exploit sensors up to 8K resolution. Thanks to the constant maximum aperture of T4 across the entire zoom range, your exposure stays the same while you zoom in or out, which ensures a calm and predictable image progression without you having to compensate. The aperture with nine blades gives a soft, natural-looking bokeh that contributes to a cinematic look.

The parfocal construction keeps your focus at exactly the same point when you zoom, so your recordings are not interrupted to refocus. In addition, focus breathing is kept to a minimum, so the angle of view barely changes when you shift the focus and your focus pulls look smooth and natural. This makes the lens pleasant to use with moving subjects and dynamic scenes.

The lens is fully tuned to professional workflows. The focus, iris and zoom ring have cine-standard gears (0.8 mod), so you connect follow focus units and lens motors directly, and the focus ring has a throw of 180° for precise, repeatable manual focusing. The dual distance scale shows both metres and feet. If you want to operate it in ENG style, you purchase the separately available Movcam servo drive.

Weighing 2.97 kg and with a length of 28.2 cm, the lens remains easy to handle, both on a tripod and handheld during longer shooting days. The 114 mm front diameter is a cinema standard, so matte boxes and filters fit easily. This makes the Ultima S35 – Lite exceptionally suitable for ENG recordings, documentaries, reality television and other demanding production work where you switch quickly between wide and telephoto.

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